


Now (She's) in the World

by PinkGerberDaisies



Series: Spectacular! Universe [4]
Category: Broadway RPF, Figure Skating RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Broadway AU, F/M, Fluff, Married Life, New Parents, One Shot, friendly baseball rivalry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-16 16:16:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19321696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PinkGerberDaisies/pseuds/PinkGerberDaisies
Summary: A quiet morning with their new baby takes a turn when Scott makes a shocking discovery.Or: a fluffy little one-shot piece set in the Spectacular! universe.





	Now (She's) in the World

**Author's Note:**

> To the few of you who requested this, thank you for your encouragement and for loving this universe as much as I do.

 

The first thing Scott noticed about his daughter was how tiny she was. The doctors and nurses had all commented on her healthy weight (eight pounds, thirteen ounces) and her length (twenty-one inches) and declared her to be a big baby (a description that Tessa had exhaustingly, wholeheartedly, agreed with). But Scott knew the truth. She was _tiny._

Tiny and precious and in need of his protection. Flipping his world inside out with the first loud cry of her lungs (perfectly on pitch, thank you) and shoving all other priorities in his life down the list far, far beneath her.

She’s grown a little in the seven weeks since then, matched her birth weight and then some, but he still can’t help thinking of her as itty-bitty. A descriptor reinforced by the way her perfect little fingers are curled around his big one as she sleeps on the mattress beside him, barely covering the second knuckle. Her button nose scrunches up a little as her breath hitches before evening out again, and Scott exhales along with her before leaning in to press a gentle kiss to her forehead - breathing in her new baby smell mixed with Johnson & Johnson baby wash and Tessa’s vanilla lotion.  

Lying on the bed behind the baby with her bare back facing them, Tessa’s ribs rise and fall in a slow, steady rhythm. She’d fallen into a deep sleep after Aria’s midnight feeding, not bothering with the inconvenience of putting her shirt back on, and Scott hadn’t had the heart to wake her again – getting up every couple of hours and making a bottle for their daughter instead so that Tessa can catch up on some much needed sleep. His wife is amazing, spectacular, really, but even though she often tries, she can’t survive on only a few hours a night.

Scott doesn’t mind though. With a full tummy and a fresh diaper, the baby will probably be out for a couple hours now. Enough time for him to catch a few more hours himself. But he doesn’t want to move her and go back to sleep. He’d much rather take advantage of the chance to bask in this quiet moment with his two favorite girls.

He entertains himself by counting the number of long eyelashes fanning her cheeks, memorizing the lines in her rosy lips that hang slightly open in a perfect imitation of her mother, and softly stroking the fine, silky hair on top of her head, pinching the ends where it’s starting to curl slightly between this thumb and index finger. The early morning sunlight turns the dark brown strands into a golden-touched halo, and he wishes he were an artist so that he could paint this moment into physical memory. There aren’t enough hours in the day to give him all the time he wants with her. His little Canuck. His Aria Jane.

Outside he can hear the sounds of the city waking up. Traffic beginning to build, tourists getting an early start as they emerge from their hotels, pigeons on every conceivable stoop and window sill squawking for something to eat. This is the melody that accompanies their daily life, as familiar to him as the twittering birds of the farmlands surrounding his childhood home, and he loves it. Although he can’t wait until next week when they head back up to Boston to spend a week or two at a beach house in Plymouth that Tessa rented off of AirBnB for his birthday.

They’re going to show Aria all of their favorite places. The Emerson Colonial theatre, the apartment building where they lived for those too-short blissful months, Boston Public Garden, the food trucks in Boston Common. They’re even going to take her to a Red Sox game, although she’ll probably sleep through most of it.

Tessa keeps teasing him that at two months old, Aria won’t notice or care about any of it, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is that they’ll be returning to the place where they fell in love _married_ and with _their daughter_.

The last six years haven’t exactly been easy. The struggle of repeated long distances between them, moving around for his job or for hers, Scott moving to Los Angeles to star in Damien Chazelle’s new movie musical while Tessa stayed in Toronto to star onstage in _Waitress_ , and an engagement that lasted far longer than either of them wanted or planned. But it’s all been worth it because it lead them here. It brought them her.

There’s a loud screeching sound followed by a sickening crunch and shouted curses start carrying up to their window, perfectly audible through the glass, making Scott rolls his eyes. Probably another taxi driver taking a corner too sharply and smashing into a tourist who thinks they can handle Manhattan driving. Why people don’t just take the subway is beyond him. It’s much better now than it was (really! The city finally did something about it after NYU students staged a massive sit in a few years ago).

Tessa shifts around a bit at the noise, her spine arching and twisting as she tries to get comfortable, before she yawns so loudly he can hear the cracking of her jaw, sighs, and rolls over to face them.

“Good morning,” She mumbles, blinking lazily at him and quirking the corner of her mouth up in an attempt to smile. Bless her for trying, but she'll never be a morning person.

"Good morning.” He reaches out and tucks some of her wild hair behind her ear - so much wavier now from the pregnancy hormones - brushing the rest away from her face, before letting his fingers drift down lower to her neck and then across her clavicle. Goosebumps break out across her skin and she clumsily tries to swat his hand away.

“’M sleeping,” She scrunches her nose up in an adorable imitation of their daughter and tries to move his hand again when he dances his fingers along the side of her breast by her armpit, a spot he knows is ticklish for her.

“I’m not stopping you,” He whispers back, full of mirth, before dipping his hand beneath the blanket and drumming his fingertips along her ribs, making her squirm and glare at him.

“Stop it.” It's halfhearted and he can see the barely contained laughter in her eyes, so he merely grins at her and arches his eyebrow.

“Or what?”

“Or I’ll kick you out of bed. Literally.” She prods his shin with her toes and Scott laughs and kicks her back, engaging in a game of horizontal footsie that’s somewhat impeded by the sheets and blanket weighing them down.

Their battle wakes Aria, her little head tossing back and forth before she finally blinks her blue eyes open to stare at him with as much accusation as an infant can manage. They’ll go green soon, he’s certain of it, and he can't wait. 

“Look what you did.” Tessa reaches over Aria to playfully shove his shoulder, and Scott shrugs before leaning in to kiss his daughter on the bridge of her nose – earning a reflex smile from her that makes his heart soar.

“She doesn’t seem to mind too much.” He gives Aria another kiss before bursting into a rather enthusiastic rendition of _Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’_ that captures her attention and makes Tessa laugh. His song only ending when Tessa abruptly cuts him off with her lips as he sings, “But a little brown maverick is winking her eye.” Probably not appreciating the way he winks at her and teasingly implies that she’s the cow in the song.

Although, to be fair, she often cuts off his singing with kisses, so he’s never quite sure if it’s a way to shut him up or her own inability to resist his voice.

“How about something where you don’t compare me to cattle?” Her lips move against his and she presses another three kisses to his mouth in quick succession before leaning back. 

"Why?" He smirks, reaching under the blanket and pinching her ass through her pajama pants, "I roped you, didn’t I?”

She yelps and swats him again, rolling her eyes as she says, “Are you sure I didn’t rope you?”

“Not at all. In fact, if you’d like to _rope me_ later, I’m totally game. This is one bull you can definitely ride for longer than eight seconds.”

“Scott!" She gasps, propping herself up on her elbow to better reprimand him as her cheeks flame red, "You can’t say stuff like that in front of our daughter.”

“Tess, she’s seven weeks old.” And currently attempting to blow spit bubbles. He hardly thinks she cares about her parents' flirtation. 

"It’s the principle of the thing.”

“Fine, fine,” He holds up his hands in surrender, “What song did you have in mind?”

She thinks about it for a second, her cheeks still stained pink from her blush, and Scott props himself up on his elbow to press a quick kiss to the underside of her jaw – taking her by surprise and drawing a moan from deep inside her chest.

“Stop that,” She whimpers, biting her bottom lip and tilting her head even further to give him more room when he nips his way along her skin to that spot underneath her ear that always makes her legs turn into jelly.

“Why?”

“Because it makes me want to have sex with you and we can’t right now,” She states bluntly, and Scott pulls away to smirk at her, ignoring the thrill that still shoots through him after all these years at the heat in her voice.  

“Tess, you can’t say stuff like that in front of our daughter. It’s the principle of the thing, you know.”

“Ungh.” She flops onto her back and rubs her eyes with the heels of her palms before looking up at his grinning face again with a pout. “Fine. I’ve picked a good morning song.”

“I’m all ears. Make it a good one, eh.”

 

_Good Morning_

_Good Morning_

_We've talked the whole night through_

_Good Morning_

_Good Morning to you_

           

The song is a classic, one of his favorites from _Singin’ in the Rain_ (although every song in that movie is arguably his favorite, especially since he’s waiting for final confirmation from his agent that he’ll be starring in the remake next year) and Scott immediately grins and joins in, the two of them harmonizing easily on each verse and chorus while smiling down at their daughter and periodically tickling the soles of her pajama-covered feet and dancing their fingers across her tummy.

It’s too early for Aria to start laughing yet, that’ll probably take another month or two, but she smiles and watches every expression on their faces with such focus and obvious joy that Scott knows she’s loving every second of it. Nothing seems to make her happier than when one of them sings to her – a fact that makes his heart feel like it’s going to explode into a burst of confetti.

They try to sing duets to her as often as possible. Her name technically means a long accompanied song for a _solo_ voice - they'd chosen it both for its musical definition and similarity to _Maria_ (the song that unknowingly set him and Tess on this path fifteen years ago) - but there’s nothing solo about her. She’s the greatest duet he and Tess will ever sing.

Scott mentally laughs at himself for the cheesy metaphor. He just knows if he spoke that thought out loud Tessa would tease him mercilessly for it and call him a ridiculous sap, but he doesn’t care. It’s true all the same, cheesy or not.

 

_So say good morning_

_Good Morning_

_Rainbows are shining through_

_Good Morning_

_Good Morning_

_Bonjour_

_Monsuier_

_Bonas Dies_

_Bunus Greas_

_Bonjourrrraaaaa_

_Artichonnnaaaa_

_Guten Morgen_

_Licha Moana_

_Good Morning to you!_

They both sit up and end the last word with wild jazz hands, and Aria blinks up at them and then promptly passes gas. Although judging by her expression and the smell, it’s a bit more solid than that.

“Well, it’s not the first time we’ve had a bad review,” Tessa deadpans, and Scott bursts out laughing.

“Sometimes those we love are our harshest critics.” He leans over and pulls Tessa in for another quick kiss before scooping up their daughter. “I’ll go change her.”

“Thanks. I’m going to hop in the shower real quick.” She climbs out of the bed alongside him and Scott playfully slaps her ass. 

“Without me?”

“Scott –“ She starts to chastise him, but her heart isn't in it, and he cuts her off with a quick peck on the cheek.

“I know, I know. Not in front of Aria.”

She laughs and shakes her head before stripping off her pajamas pants and underwear and tossing them in the direction of the hamper, and Scott waits a few seconds before leaving to ogle his wife. Her body has changed a bit with the pregnancy and birth, her breasts a little heavier, her hips a little wider, stretch marks fading low on her abdomen, but she’s still just as beautiful as ever. It takes his breath away.

Tessa catches him staring and winks and blows him a kiss before disappearing into the en-suite, adding an extra sway to her hips as she goes, and Scott sighs a little with disappointment that he can’t join her.

Instead he makes his way down the short hallway and into Aria’s room, which isn’t much more than a glorified closet at the moment while she’s still spending every night either in their arms or the bassinet beside their bed.

Although he isn’t looking forward to the day when she’ll be old enough to be in the grey crib they bought, he still enjoys spending time in the little nursery they’ve created. Tessa had chosen varying shades of white and grey and Scott had asked Holly to come over and paint a musical staff on the far wall with the notes for the chorus of _Your Song_ on it (it turns out their friend has a surprising artistic streak). It’s peaceful and soothing and he likes holding Aria and sitting in the rocking chair in the corner while he whisper-sings lullabies in her ear.

_And you can tell everybody this is your song_   
_It may be quite simple but now that it's done_   
_I hope you don't mind_   
_I hope you don't mind_   
_That I put down in words_   
_How wonderful life is now you're in the world_

The words were true about Tessa when he first sang them to her in Boston, and they're true about Aria now. 

He lays her down in the crib for a second to grab a new diaper and the wipes, then goes to the closet to search for an outfit. They’re going to lunch with Holly and her wife at some point today, so she needs to look appropriately put together. AKA no mismatched socks or a striped onesie with floral pants, as Tessa has warned him multiple times.

He opens one of the drawers inside and finds a bunch of brand new onesies that Tessa must have purchased, and he grabs the top one to take a look. It’s light pink and will pair well with the black and white polka-dot pants he found (see? he’s learning), but when he turns it around he instantly hates it.

“Gah!” He drops the offending fabric back into the pile with a grimace and picks up the next one. It’s grey, but the logo is still the same, and he discards that one with equal disgust. Rifling through the drawer he finds more and more of the same, his ire increasing with each one. A million birds, not a single tiger.

Scott quickly changes Aria’s diaper and dresses her in a yellow romper instead before scooping her up and grabbing all of the terrible clothes in one big handful and marching back into the master bedroom.

He refuses to be deterred when he walks in on Tessa in nothing but a towel looking through her own drawer for clean underwear, her long legs peeking out from underneath the white terrycloth and practically glowing where the light hits them. The sound of metal clanking around as her Tony and Grammy bump up against each other while she searches for the pair she wants. She insists on keeping them in the same drawer as her underwear and socks, rather than on display, and it’s a quirk Scott finds both eccentric and endearing.

(His own Tony and Oscar are displayed on the mantel at his parent’s house in Ilderton, and he can’t think of a better place for them to be.)

“Care to explain this, Virtch?”

“What?” She lets the towel fall away as she turns around and bends over to put her underwear on. A practical, every day lime green cotton pair that really aren’t remarkable in any way, and yet he watches her slide the fabric up her legs with rapt attention. Licking his lips and swallowing loudly when she lightly snaps the waistband against her skin once they’re in place. “Should I bother getting dressed?” She smirks, her eyes dropping to his crotch, and Scott has to forcibly shake the fog of lust out of his head as he sets Aria, asleep again, down in her bassinet.

“You never have to get dressed when I’m around, but explain this first.” He holds up the onesies, each one a slightly different style, but all bearing one important similarity.

They’re all _Blue Jays_ onesies.

“Oh, those?” She asks, her expression coy and her voice far too innocent, “I ordered them online. Aria’s going to look adorable in them, don’t you think?”

“Tess, I thought we agreed to raise our baby neutral.”

“Did we?” She cocks her head and nibbles on her bottom lip, twirling a strand of damp hair around her finger while her green eyes sparkle with uncontained mischief. She purposely folds her other arm underneath her breasts, pushing them up a bit, but Scott won’t let her distract him.

That little _sneak!_ She’d made him feel so guilty when she was waddling around nine months pregnant in the middle of a hot Manhattan summer and he’d brought home a Tigers beanie – pouting and rubbing her stomach and asking if their baby could be neutral when it came to baseball affiliation. Claiming she didn’t want either of them to suffer. And here she is two and a half months later turning Aria’s entire wardrobe into a freaking aviary!

“I can’t believe you’re trying to convert our daughter to the Jays behind my back.”

“She was born on July first, Scott, of course she supports the Canadian team. Are you trying to say you don’t want our daughter to be patriotic?”

“I-I-I,” He splutters, “Of course not! But you _betrayed_ me, T!”

“I didn’t betray you! I –“ She stops and her cheeks flush pink, the blush rapidly spreading down her neck to her chest, and Scott does get distracted then. Following the color and zeroing in on the droplets of water still clinging to the tops of her breasts - his mouth watering at the thought of licking them away for her. “I wasn’t planning on going back on our agreement, but then I saw the cutest little Jays booties and I couldn’t help but buy them, and then they won three games in a row. So then I bought a bow off Etsy, and they won another two games. They’re heading for the World Series this season, Scott, and I just thought… if buying Aria merch was somehow ensuring their wins, then the right thing to do would be to buy _more_.”

Scott stares at her for a few seconds, absorbing her words, before slowly responding. “So you’re saying this is all superstition’s fault. You’re just being a good fan.”

“Mmhmm," Tessa bobs her head and smiles apologetically, "It’s just for good luck, that’s all. It wasn’t anything nefarious.”

“So you agree that Aria can choose for herself which team to support, we’re not going to influence her either way?” Scott fixes her with look and Tessa squirms uncomfortably, shuffling her weight back and forth between each foot. 

“I –“

“Tessa,” He presses, and she throws her hands out to the side. 

“Oh come on, Scott, I can’t promise that! I want to raise our daughter the right way!”

“Excuse me?”

“Danny agrees with me!”

“Of course he does. But my brother didn’t father your child, Virtch, I did.” Tessa’s whole face scrunches up in the most hilarious expression of disgust and horror at the thought, and Scott bursts out laughing. “That’s not what I meant to say.”

“I should hope not. Yuck.” She sticks out her tongue and shakes her head, then seems to realize what she’s implying and stops, “I mean, not that I don’t love Danny. He’s great. Just… yuck.”

“I love Danny, too," Scott says, still chuckling, "But I agree wholeheartedly with your ‘yuck’ assessment. You're _my_ Tessa, he has his own.”

Tessa giggles and makes her way across the room to wrap her arms around him, burrowing into his chest and kissing the underside of his jaw when he brings his arms up to return her embrace. “Look, this is just until we get to the World Series, okay? After the season is over, I’ll stop.”

“Fine," Scott sighs, half of his brain already refocusing on how much of her skin is currently on display and pressed up against him, "Just until the World Series. But after that I’m buying all the infant-sized Tigers merch I can find.”

She grimaces, but nods her head, “Deal.”

Her hands slip underneath the hem of his white t-shirt to scratch the small of his back, sending shivers up his spine, and Scott swallows thickly - struggling to get his next words out in the correct order. “And this stays between us. I don’t want any social media posts making people think Aria’s picked a side when she hasn’t.”

“Okay," Tessa slips her hands inside his boxers and squeezes his ass, making his hips jerk into hers, "I promise.”

"Awesome." He groans and smashes his mouth against hers, pausing only to turn on the baby monitor before leading her out into the living room so that they can finish what they started on the couch, the conversation already being relegated to the recesses of his mind.  

 

 

That is, until the Blue Jays beat the Padres in game seven of the World Series that October, and this ends up on Instagram:

 

(Neither of them are too upset about it.)

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you liked it <3


End file.
